Hidden
by vanrigsby
Summary: What's Beckett got hiding under that black coat of hers? AU ending to 2x06, spoilers for that episode.
1. Under the coat

**A/N: I was a little upset at the ending of this episode, so I figured that's what fanfiction's for, right? Spoilers for 2x06. The title was a last-minute idea, so apologies if it sucks.**

**A (belated) birthday present for the best friend in the world - Rhianna. This is the best I could do; I'm sorry. You're the light of my life, and one of the most incredible people I know. Words can't describe how much you mean to me. I know it's late beautiful, but please forgive me! Hope you enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I'm at least 97% sure I don't own it. All mistakes, however, are 100% mine.**

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"Hey Poe, looking for me?"

Castle knew that musical voice all too well. Spinning around, he saw Beckett, dressed in all her cop-looking glory, standing there staring at him. He was surprised. If she was going to turn up, at least she could have actually dressed up! It _was _a costume party after all.

"You're you!" was all he could make out. He was equal parts happy and upset. He was happy she'd shown up, but upset that she hadn't even worn a costume. She could have dressed up as anything; it didn't even have to be Halloween-y. Anything _but _a cop. He may or may not have thought about how good she'd look in that nurse's costume…

"You sound so disappointed, Castle." The voice of the woman in question brought him back from his probably over-the-line-of-appropriate thoughts.

Well, of course he was disappointed! Even if she didn't have the nurse's costume, it'd be interesting to see what she'd come up with. But no, she'd come as her. How was that even a costume?!

"I said costumes mandatory! I mean, dress up. You know, be a little scary."

He was _so _not ready for what she said next.

"Yeah, well, I was going for sexy."

_Sexy…sexy… Detective Katherine Beckett was going for sexy…_He had to admit, his heart started beating a little faster, his breathing hitched, his eyes probably widened a little. His mind raced at the million and one _sexy_possibilities that could be contained under that black coat of hers.

He came back to earth when he noticed her hand slowly making its way from her side to her belt. Her long, slender fingers wrapped around the loose end, hesitating slightly. His eyes followed her hand, darting back up to meet her eyes briefly, and he knew his widened. He quickly looked back at the belt, not wanting to miss one second. Beckett tugged sharply on the belt of her coat. It fell away from her front, and with a shrug of her shoulders it landed softly and silently on the floor at her feet.

Castle couldn't tell you what was going on elsewhere in the room at that moment if you paid him a million dollars. The other girls in the room looked good - great even - but Beckett looked absolutely drop dead gorgeous.

He started his appraisal at her mile-long legs, which were encased in tight thigh-high leather boots. Laced up to well past her knee and at least four inches tall, the boots made Castle's jaw drop a little. How could he have not noticed them before?! Surely they at least peeked out of the bottom of the coat when it was done up. The next thing that caught his eye was the skirt she was wearing. Or lack thereof. The skirt, which was also made of leather, was so short Castle knew if she turned around, it would barely cover everything. There was only about five inches of skin between the top of the boots and the hem of the skirt, but even that made Castle appreciate Beckett's height, and therefore longer legs, that much more.

His eyes continued their survey of her body, travelling up past her bare midriff, showing even more of her toned body and creamy skin, and finally reached her shirt. Or, once again, lack thereof. A skin-tight leather tee clung to Beckett's every curve, the 'v' in the neck dipping down agonizingly low. A small imitation police badge was sewn into the fabric on one side of her chest, though Castle barely even registered.

He finally tore his gaze away and managed to look at her face. Her brilliant green eyes sparkled with mischief, a small smile played on her lips. She looked absolutely radiant. Her costume would probably have been inappropriate at any other party – especially if this was a _work _Halloween party – but at Castle's party she fit in just fine amongst the scantily clad mummies, zombies, vampires and the like. Not that Castle noticed any other girl after seeing Beckett's costume. The smile that was toying with the corner of her lips broke into a full-blown grin when she noticed Castle's bewilderment.

"So, what do you think Castle? Did I do Nikki Heat justice?"

_My god, _Castle thought, _you look so much better than I could have ever imagined Nikki Heat looking. _

Instead of voicing his thoughts, he gulped and settled for the option that was probably the least likely to get him shot. "Well, you see, I'd imagined her a little more-"

"Castle, shut up and appreciate Nikki Heat for tonight, you won't be seeing her again outside of your book," Beckett's voice held a strange mixture of laughter and warning.

"Or my imagination," Castle retorted, with a waggle of his eyebrows, managing to pull himself together enough for a witty comeback. Beckett simply rolled her eyes in response.

Pretty much every eye in the room was trained on the exchange between Castle and Beckett, even as they continued their own conversations. After Castle managed to compose himself fully, he smiled at Beckett and offered a hand.

"Can I get you a drink?"

Beckett looked at his outstretched hand with one raised eyebrow.

"Come on, Beckett. Just let yourself go for one night. It _is _a party."

Beckett bit her lip. "Fine," she sighed, rolling her eyes, but taking his hand anyway.

xxx

Beckett had to admit, she felt a little weird under Castle's intense scrutiny. But she did get butterflies in her stomach as she watched his gaze rake appreciatively over her costume. She'd known it was a good choice, and if his reaction was any indication, she'd done what she'd set out to do.

As they were sipping on Castle's 'special concoction', Castle had an idea. Placing his drink on the table beside the two of them, he turned to face Beckett.

"May I have this dance?" he asked with an overly elaborate bow.

Beckett dipped her head briefly, and looked up at Castle once he'd stood back up to his full height, only a few inches taller than she, especially with her heels on.

"I don't think this is the place for dancing Castle," she said.

"Of course it is!" he replied, gesturing to the dance floor, which was, quite simply, a mass of writhing bodies.

"No, Castle," Beckett's voice was filled with stubbornness, and her tone conveyed in no uncertain terms that she absolutely was not going to bend on the issue.

"But Beckett! We all know you're a lovely dancer."

"You just want an excuse to put your hands on me."

"Maybe, but come on. Please? I promise not to annoy you for two whole days." Castle held up two fingers to emphasise his statement. He really did mean it. If he could have just one dance with the gorgeous detective standing in front of him, it would certainly be worth not annoying said detective for two days.

"Castle, it's Friday night. The next two days are the weekend." But Castle could hear her starting to agree with him.

"Monday and Tuesday. I'll be good. Promise. If not, you can punish me." This statement was accompanied by a suggestive tone in his voice and a wink.

"You wish," Beckett finally relented; taking the hand that was still hanging in the air between them. "But no funny business. And you have to make good on your promise."

"Of course!" Castle said, pretending to be shocked that she would doubt him. As they made their way towards the dance floor, Castle couldn't help but notice out of the corner of his eye that Beckett had taken a strand of her hair and was twirling it gently around one long, slim finger.

Just as they managed to reach an open space on the dance floor, the quick, upbeat song that was blaring finished, and the first few notes of a slow song started to float through the air.

"Oh, no," Beckett said, pulling away from Castle and beginning to walk backwards off the floor, "this is not what I signed up for. Be as bad as you want Castle, I'm _not_ slow dancing with you."

"Come on, one dance?" Castle pleaded, catching hold of her wrist and pulling her back.

Beckett rolled her eyes, a gesture Castle realized he loved beyond words, and sighed, but allowed herself to be pulled into Castle's arms.

"I'm not getting out of this, am I?" she asked, and Castle recognized the defeat in her voice.

"Nope!" he grinned smugly, as she delicately wrapped her arms around his neck and his automatically rested on her waist. The warmth of her soft, bare skin heated his palms. The urge to run his hands all over every inch of her exposed skin was almost unbearable, yet out of respect for her, he restrained himself. He figured just one dance would be worth being good for two whole days. But if he screwed this up, no dance, _and, _knowing Beckett,she'd still expect him to be good on Monday and Tuesday.

They swayed gently from side to side in time with the music, and Castle loved the dreamy look that crossed over Beckett's eyes as they did so. She rested her chin on his shoulder, and he leant his head on an angle slightly just to touch her head with his. Her sweet cherry scent wrapped around him as her body did, and he discovered that it was one of the most wonderful smells he had ever experienced. He would have to add in that small factor into his next Nikki Heat book, if he could. Oh, and the eye rolling. He couldn't forget the eye rolling. Over the top of the crowd, he spotted Alexis standing on the staircase, her brilliant blue eyes sweeping the room, even as she conversed with her friend. His daughter raised her eyebrows at him in question when she noticed him and Beckett. Castle just smiled sunnily in response, and Alexis gave him a look that simply said 'be careful with her', and turned back to the conversation she was in the middle of. She really was too wise for her age, that one. He wondered where she got her brains.

Beckett pulled her head from his shoulder as the song started to end. She looked so beautiful, there, at his party, in his character's costume, in his arms, that he couldn't help himself. He leant his head over, and gently touched his lips to hers. The kiss was hesitant, a barely there brushing of the lips, but he could still feel how soft they were, just like the rest of her. To his complete and utter surprise, she closed the distance between them and kissed him back.

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**A/N: So, here you are. I already have the next one or two chapters written, so I won't wait forever like with my other fic... (I mean, what?). At least one review will encourage me to post more. Let me know what you think of it so far?**

**P.S. If you think of a better title idea, please let me know!**


	2. Under the sheet

**A/N: So here's chapter 2. As Micrazy2 pointed out, yes, they are a little OOC, and I apologize profusely. But I hope that doesn't turn you away. It IS AU. This chapter probably gets a little more OOC (more like how they act in later seasons, rather than so early on). Bear with me? If it gets too much, just let me know, and I can do what I can to change it.**

**ralagh47, here's the kiss aftermath you wanted!**

**HUGE thanks to Ritutsch, castle1701, Guest (x3), Micrazy2 and ralagh47 for reviewing Chapter 1.**

**Disclaimer: I'm pretty sure that I haven't inherited it since the last chapter.**

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Castle awoke slowly, his eyes adjusting to the dim brightness that filled the room. By the amount of light filtering through his bedroom window via the blinds in his office, he estimated it was around five o'clock in the morning. The second thing that his brain registered was that he was not alone. A pair of slim legs were tangled with his, and a pair of slender arms were draped across his torso. One of his arms was wrapped around her waist, which he could tell was still bare and still warm. Her head was nuzzled up to his neck, a cherry-smelling mop of soft brown hair obscuring her face.

His hand automatically reached over to her face and brushed the hair back behind her ear. A smile graced his features as he saw how peaceful she looked in sleep. His hand traced her delicate features one by one, unsure of when, if ever, he would be allowed to do this again. His hand drifted to the sheet that lay across her shoulders. Wanting to, but not wanting to go too far, he slowly started to push the sheet down. A sigh that was made up of half relief and half not escaped his lips as the sheet slid over her shoulders. She was still clothed. He lifted the sheet up and took a peek underneath. He was still clothed from the waist down; she had everything on except her boots.

She shivered subconsciously at the slight rush of cool morning air, and snuggled closer to Castle in her sleep. He grinned as she tightened her hold on him. She was so different when she was asleep to when she was awake. Never in a million years would she knowingly 'snuggle' with Castle. His arm tightened around her middle, and he leaned over and softly kissed the top of her head. Castle marveled at how well her body molded to his, how natural she felt at his side. Her bare midriff was pressed against his stomach, and the contact sent licks of fire throughout Castle's body. It took every ounce of self-control he had to remain completely still and keep the blood flowing through his body normally.

After a little while, Castle noticed another movement against his chest. He looked down towards his gorgeous female companion, and he found himself staring deep into two green eyes, darkened a few shades browner by the shadows of the early morning. Something similar to shock skittered across her face for a fraction of a second.

"Castle," she said, her voice quiet and drowsy with sleep. "Hi."

"Oh, hi," Castle replied, quietly reveling in the gorgeous, never-before-heard timbre of her voice. "Did you want me to get out? I'm sorry. I'll get out. I made you uncomfortable, didn't I? Dammit, I'm sorry, Kate."

Words tumbled out of his mouth like a river as Castle made a move to get out of the bed, but a vice-like grip around his waist stopped him in his tracks.  
"I never said that, Castle. When I woke up, did I move to get out? I was surprised, but not in a bad way. Calm down."

Her gentle smile instantly calmed Castle, and he slowly relaxed back into the bed. In an unspoken admission of feelings, she laid her head back down on his bare chest, and Castle wrapped his arms around her middle, kissing the top of her head as he did so. She looked up at him with a smile, stretching up languidly and kissing his lips in response. Castle kissed her back softly, only vaguely remembering the bits and pieces that had happened after their first kiss last night.

xxx

_After their first heart-stopping kiss on the dance floor, Castle and Beckett made their way back to where they'd left their drinks, their hands entwined. He'd liked that, very much. Honestly, he'd felt like he was walking on air. He could have skipped around his apartment, if only Beckett would keep her hand in his, her body beside his. Castle didn't mind the few funny looks he got, especially those from Ryan and Esposito. He even thought he noticed Ryan grudgingly handing Esposito a note or two._

_ Castle couldn't quite put together what happened after that, he only knew it involved a **lot** of his special concoction, a lot of dancing with Beckett and a lot of kisses. Somewhere along the line he'd lost his wig and moustache. Oh well, he'd look for it amongst the debris in the morning._

_He did, however, remember when it had come time for the guests to go home. It was just after one-thirty in the morning, and most of the crowd had already dissipated, heading out the door to catch a cab, or to carpool with a friend who was sober. He remembered that just him, Alexis, his mother and Beckett had been left. _

_Beckett had drunk too much to be allowed to drive, and there was nobody left who was both sober and legally allowed to drive. And, because he was always the gentleman, Castle offered her to stay at his place the night. Despite the fact she had no pajamas or clothes for the next day, after much argument (including, to Castle's embarrassment, a weighing in from the two redheads), Beckett had finally given in and agreed to stay the night. She'd been told she could take Castle's bed, he said he'd stay on the couch. Though they had a spare room, the bed was not made up and none of the four could really be bothered to do so at this time in the morning. Hence, she was offered Castle's king size bed all to herself. Castle remembered the look of determination that had crossed her face as she denied him, saying they were both adults and could certainly handle staying in one bed for one night, right?_

_Well, she was kind of right. They'd managed to get her out of her extremely uncomfortable boots, and him out of his stiff white shirt, before falling, exhausted, into bed. Castle had leaned down to give her a chaste goodnight kiss, but it had escalated, and not unpleasantly. Beckett had pulled back before it got too far, insisting that this was not the right thing to do when they were both as drunk as they were, that they would discuss this and maybe even continue it further when they could both control their actions, maybe, if they were lucky, in the morning. Plus, she would most definitely prefer that she was fully aware of her actions for their first time together. Her nobility, even when she was drunk and entangled in his arms in his bed, made his stomach twist with desire, and, even though he found it terribly difficult, he agreed._

xxx

Now she was still in his arms, her head had gone back to resting on his chest, and he wondered if she still felt the same way as last night. He knew he did.

As if reading his mind, Beckett looked up at him.

"So," she began, running a hand through her sleep-mussed hair in a futile attempt to smooth it down, "I guess we should talk."

"Yeah," Castle said as a reply.

"Well, do you still feel the same way as last night?" Beckett asked softly, taking the words right from Castle's mind.

"Do you?" He answered her question with a question.

"I asked you first!" Beckett evaded his query, waiting to hear his reply before voicing her own.

"But you're the girl, you should answer first!"

"Castle, don't toy with me," Beckett's originally jovial tone turned sour with the note of warning. "Just answer already."

"Do we have to talk about this?"

"Yes, _Rick,_" Beckett emphasized his first name, which, even in the tone she used, sent waves of warmth through Castle's body. "We do."

Beckett was so unlike his previous wives. They were focused on shopping, on having friends and parties and money. She was focused on her life, her job, fostering the relationships with the people she was close to. She had her head screwed on right. Castle had honestly never expected to fall in love with her. Wait, what? He'd _fallen _for this no-nonsense, gorgeous but tough as nails cop? He'd actually done it. Somewhere along the line his shameless flirting had turned into truth. He didn't know where, and he didn't know how, but it had, and he really didn't think he hated that.

"Well," Castle said, looking down, "yeah. I do." Now that he'd had this revelation, he really hoped she'd say the same. He continued talking, babbling to the woman beside him. "You're smart, you're fierce, you're kind. You're such a change from the previous women I've supposedly fallen in love with and then married. I like it. I like you, Kate. I mean, I really like you. Don't hate me." Bracing himself, he shut his eyes and turned his head away.

He felt one of her long, slender, gentle fingers hook under his chin, bringing his face back up to look at hers. Her gorgeous greeny-brown eyes once again mesmerized him, and he knew it was a sight he would never get tired of.

"Rick," she whispered, a small smile tugging at the corner of her perfect mouth, "you're the biggest pain in the ass I've ever met. But I love having you around. You make my life fun. I don't mind you pulling my pigtails if it means I get to have a little fun every now and again. I like it. I like you Rick. I really like you." She copied the last part of his little speech almost word for word, making Castle smile and pull her towards him in a crushing embrace.

He didn't know how long they remained like that, snuggled together under the covers, but before he knew it, the sun was streaming in through the window and bathing his room in an orange glow.

"I'd better get up," he suggested grudgingly.

"No," Beckett whined uncharacteristically, wrapping herself around him. "Stay."

"Kate," a hint of a smile crept into Castle's voice, "we have to eat breakfast. Mother and Alexis will be up at any moment."

Beckett groaned, her grasp on Castle's waist still unrelenting. "You've got a while yet."

Castle trailed his fingers over her shoulder and down to her ribcage, with the intention of tickling her. However, it had the opposite of the desired effect, causing Beckett to press closer to him.

Deciding that it was time to bring out the big guns, he flexed his fingers and laid them against her stomach. Castle began to tickle her, within mere moments eliciting giggles and pleas of mercy. They rolled so Beckett was underneath him as he continued the assault on her body.

"Stop Castle," the attempt at seriousness was lost as she dissolved into giggles.

Castle figured he should stop, but it was just way too much fun to see Beckett so carefree, so uninhibited and happy.

He'd barely registered that Beckett's fingertips were on his stomach before she began to tickle him as well. With a smirk, he leant down, effectively trapping her hands between their bodies. His lips brushed hers in a kiss.

"Breakfast," he murmured against her lips.

"No," he could feel her pout.

He replied with a grin, "yes," kissing her one last time before clambering out of bed in search of the kitchen.

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**A/N: So there we are. Kiss aftermath and all. Probably a bad chapter overall, but I hope it was at least acceptable. Please let me know what you think, and how I can improve!**


	3. The aftermath

**A/N: Chapter 3 is finally here! So sorry it's late. I've been busy plus I've developed a new addiction: Grey's Anatomy... **

**I am really grateful to everyone who's favourited, followed or reviewed the story so far. Your support is amazing. I know these guys are acting OOC, but I like writing them like this. Plus, does nobody remember the season 5 premiere? Castle acted the same way. This is me telling you: I know. You don't have to tell me. This is ****_my_**** story. Anyways, I hope this chapter is okay. Yes, more OOC. But just live with it. I know the general consensus about the tickle fight in the last chapter was split, but I enjoyed it, so there.**

**Thanks to castle1701, Guest, ritika and DX2012 for reviewing Chapter 2. Special thanks to taytay18951, Gazing at Castles in the Sky and LadyAilith for being so encouraging.**

**Rhianna, beautiful, I hope you enjoy this one. You deserve to have an amazing birthday present so it's the least I can do to live up to it. You make me smile every day. Don't know where I would be without you. I'm so sorry this is so late.**

**Also, ritika, yes, I am making this a multi-chapter. I know kind of where I am going, but I might use some of your ideas. **

**Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, what do you think? **

**Now, after that marathon A/N, onto the story?**

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Castle flipped the pancakes one last time before deciding they were ready to serve. Just as he was sliding the last pancake onto the plate, Alexis came trudging down the stairs.

"Good morning daughter," he greeted her.

"You know you have to clean this up, right?" was her way of a good morning, in addition to a gesture around at the mess left by the partygoers from last night. Castle did a quick survey of the damage. There wasn't too much, but doing it by himself would take days. He'd have to somehow rope Alexis, his mother and Beckett into helping.

"Yeah, I know. I'll do it later. Right now, we have a lovely breakfast made by yours truly. Go get your grandmother and Beckett." Castle was careful not to slip up and call her Kate in front of his daughter; she'd certainly know something was up.

"Alright," Alexis said with a huff, only going halfway up the stairs before calling out loudly, "Grams, breakfast is ready!" and then walking over to the lounge room to yell in the vague direction of Castle's bedroom, "Detective Beckett, breakfast is ready!"

Martha came down the stairs before Beckett emerged from Castle's room, and Castle smiled, handing her a plate of pancakes and adding a swirl of syrup with a flourish. He left the syrup and other toppings on the counter in case she wanted to add more herself.

Alexis sat down next to her grandmother, and Castle leaned over the counter to look her in the eyes.

"Be happy. You're alive, the sun is shining, and you have pancakes. I'll clean the mess up later."

"Sure Dad," she said, but she smiled and visibly cheered up anyway. "What's got you so happy this morning anyways?"

"Detective Beckett stayed over last night," Martha told her granddaughter with a wink.

"Oh yeah, I remember," Alexis said excitedly, far too excitedly for Castle's liking.

"Don't get over-excited," Castle said, hoping that she hadn't come to the conclusion he would have thought of if presented with such a situation.

"Yeah, but she's not out here yet and you're in an awfully good mood…" Alexis's voice trailed off suggestively, complete with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

"Draw whatever conclusions you wish," Castle said, trying to avoid talking about the topic any further. It didn't work.

"A new chapter for Nikki Heat, I presume?" Martha said, leaning towards him, a dangerous glint in her eyes.

"Whatever, Mother," Castle shoveled more pancakes into his mouth, effectively cutting himself off from the conversation.

After breakfast, Castle told Alexis that her and Martha had to clean up the dishes.

"What?! Oh, Richard, why me?"

Castle sighed at his mother's dramatic side. He used an argument she'd used on him and Alexis many times.

"Because I cooked."

Alexis and Martha managed to clean the dishes with relatively little resistance. Alexis went to her room to practice her violin, and Martha retreated to hers to run though some lines for about the millionth time. He knew it would be about half an hour before they would both get bored with their respective forms of amusement, then Martha would offer to take Alexis out, she would agree, then they would head off for another girly day, leaving him to stare at his laptop, lost in thoughts of Kate Beckett as he attempted to write another chapter of his next Nikki Heat book. It was kind of a routine, really.

Castle was very glad that they had gone upstairs when they did, for not five minutes after they disappeared up the stairs; he heard another set of footsteps heading out towards the lounge room and the dining room seat that he was at. He knew instantly who it was. Though he was sitting on a chair with his back towards the owner of the footsteps, he smiled and called out a cheery "good morning Beckett."

He was greeted with a "morning Castle," in return, and he turned around.

What he saw shocked him. Almost as much as when he had found out that Beckett was dressed as Nikki Heat for his party. Kate Beckett was dressed in one of _his_ shirts, leaving her exceptionally long legs on display for him. His shirt was too big for her, so she'd rolled up the sleeves, but left the bottom hanging. It was just a bit longer than her skirt had been last night and this morning. This was, by far one of the best things he'd ever seen, or really even thought about. Kate Beckett was wearing _his _shirt, after spending the night in _his _bed. Granted, it wasn't the kind of _spend_ that he would have liked, but that would happen one day, he was sure. His jaw must have been dropping almost to the floor, as Beckett, whilst making her way over to him, laughed and explained, "my outfit was getting really irritating, I thought I'd change into something more comfortable. Hope you don't mind."

He grinned in response to hers, and she came up behind him, wrapping her arms around his neck and tilting his head back. She kissed him quickly, and then stood up to her full height.

"When's breakfast?"

"About fifteen minutes ago," Castle said, amused, as he pushed his chair back to get a better view of her.

"I have to make my own then?" Beckett said, walking around the chair and sitting on Castle's lap.

"That'd be the general idea," he replied, running a hand though her hair. He had to smile inwardly at how different she was around him now, in their own time, off duty, now that they were kind-of-sort-of-unofficially together, than she was at work. It was a refreshing change, if a little out of character.

Suddenly, Castle noticed something. Alexis's violin had stopped playing .

"Quick," he said, gently pushing her off his lap, "hide in my room. Alexis and mom will be down any second."

"Hide? What?! Castle," Beckett's tone was dangerous.

"Please," he implored, putting on his best puppy dog eyes. His fingers reached up to trace her face. "Please?"

"Fine," Beckett sighed. She slid gracefully off his lap, landed soundlessly on the floor, and swiftly hurried to his bedroom, shutting the door carefully as she did so.

It was a good thing Castle had noticed when he did, because just as Beckett was out of sight, Alexis and Martha came down the stairs.

"Where's Beckett?" Alexis asked.

"She's probably still asleep. Good thing we don't have work today," Castle joked, hoping neither his mother nor daughter suspected anything in his voice. Technically, because there were no urgent cases, they didn't have work today or tomorrow, being the weekend and all, but they always had to be prepared. Murderers didn't really care about weekends. But officially they didn't have to be in at work until Monday, when they were expected to come in and finish paperwork until they got a new case. _Good thing I don't have to do paperwork, just Beckett, Ryan and Esposito! _he grinned to himself. He almost lost himself in thoughts of more hours simply sitting and watching the incredible Kate Beckett do paperwork, when his mother's voice brought him back.

"Alright then, when she gets up, tell her we wish she could have come," Martha said by way of goodbye, heading out the door with a smug smile plastered on her face.

"Bye Dad," Alexis said, coming over to give Castle a kiss on the cheek. "We'll be back just after lunch I think. Say hey to Beckett for me." With a slight wink, she was gone. Castle wondered what Beckett would think of all the assumptions being made by his mother and daughter.

He waved his family off, making sure they were really truly gone before going to retrieve Beckett from her hiding place.

He walked into his room, and couldn't see her.

"Beckett?" he whispered, then louder "Kate?"

Upon saying her first name, he felt a heavy weight hit his back, and two lengthy legs wrapped around his waist. Castle started to struggle against the two arms threatening to go around his neck until he noticed the smell. Cherries. He relaxed, and Beckett's head appeared over his shoulder.

"Boo," she grinned.

"You scared me Kate."

"You know that was the plan, right?"

"I figured as much. You know, you're stronger than you look."

"Um, thanks?" Beckett was still hanging off Castle, her legs around his waist, her head on his shoulder, her arms draped loosely around his neck. Castle realized she was a lot lighter than she looked, having such a tall frame and all. He didn't mind holding up her weight, it was a burden he was happy to bear if it meant that he got to be this close to Beckett for any period of time.

"It's a compliment. You've got the body of a model; nobody would have guessed there was that much muscle in you. Might be good for something else than tackling dirt bags?" Castle grinned teasingly.

"You might just be lucky enough to find out," she replied with a wink.

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**IMPORTANT. PLEASE READ. This chapter was written and rewritten so many times I lost count. It took a lot, and I mean a lot, to post it. I had it one way, then changed the entire layout of the scene, including where everyone was positioned, and that had some really annoying repercussions. Some facts may be wrong, but for that I beg you to forgive me. But do let me know what you thought!**


	4. Discussion and revelation

**A/N: Well, my apologies for the long wait. It's been a while, I know, but hopefully this chapter is up to scratch. Unfortunately, real life takes priority over fanfiction, so this has been on the backburner for a while. **

**Rhianna: enjoy beautiful.**

**Thanks to all those who reviewed. It means a lot, and, believe it or not, actually helps keep me going.**

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About an hour later, Castle decided that it really was time to have the discussion that he and Beckett needed to have.

"Kate?" he said as they were curled up on the couch, him typing up some more for his next Nikki Heat novel, her resting her head on his shoulder.

"Yeah?" she said, looking up at him, their noses a few inches apart.

"What are we gonna do at work on Monday?"

"I'd rather just spend the weekend with you first without having to worry about work for once."

"What do you mean?" he asked, genuinely confused. Was she asking permission to stay another night?

"Well, my first suggestion would be that we have to go get some more clothes for me. I know _you_ may like my Nikki Heat costume, but I'm not a fan of wearing that out in public and I have a feeling that nobody would really like it if I walked out of here wearing just your shirt."

What she was saying seemed, to Castle's ears, more like asking if she could stay the night. Maybe his suspicions were right… But surely not. This was so unlike Kate.

"Well, what are you going to wear over to your house to pick up these said clothes?" He lifted the laptop from his lap and placed it on the coffee table.

She grinned. "I dunno. This?" She gestured to his shirt, which she was still wearing.

"I'm not arguing with that," he began, pulling her onto his lap, "but I think that there would be some people out there who would rather you put on some pants."

"Aw, Castle," she teased, pinching his cheek. "Jealous some hunky guy will come and sweep me off my feet if I don't have anything covering my legs?"

"No," he swatted half-heartedly at her hand, "I'm worried some woman will tear you to shreds because her husband can't keep his eyes off of you."

"Okay then," her hand left his face, moving to rest on his neck as her face inched closer to his. "If you say so."

xxx

They arrived back at Castle's apartment at the same time as Alexis and Martha.

"Grams," Alexis said, turning towards the older redheaded woman beside her, "you owe me ten bucks."

"What? No I don't. The deal was only if they displayed it, my dear," was Martha's reply as Castle unlocked the door and the four of them stepped inside. "Technically, we haven't seen anything yet."

Beckett turned to Castle, stage-whispering, "any idea what they're on about?"

Castle replied with a smile, "us." His smile grew even wider at her total confusion. "My darling daughter and my dear mother had a bet going as to whether we would get together within a week of the Halloween party."

"Dad! How did you know?!" Alexis cried incredulously, dumping her bags of clothes onto the couch.

"I know all," Castle said, pretending to be mysterious. His attempt only garnered a giggle from Alexis, an eye roll from Beckett and a slap on the shoulder from Martha.

"Ow! What was that for?!"

"Oh Richard, stop being such a child."

In retaliation, Castle simply poked his tongue out at his mother, earning himself another slap, this time from Beckett.

"Hey!"

"Respect your mother!"

Martha grinned at Beckett. "Oh, dear, it's fine. It's you I'm worried about. You didn't raise him! Funny story, you see, there was this one time–"

"Mother, must you embarrass me?" Castle interrupted his mother, gaining another slap from Beckett.

"Don't glare at me like that. Believe it or not, I actually wanted to hear that story."

"No you didn't."

"Yes, I did."

"No, you did–"

"Children, please!" Alexis said, stepping in front of the bickering pair, staring up at them with a knowing grin on her face. Her hands floated to her hips as she shook her head. "Act your age."

"You know," Martha piped up from behind Alexis, "it's been proven that when one child teases another, or they bicker like the two of you do, that they _like _each other."

Castle rolled his eyes, trying to brush it off, but he noticed Beckett blushing out of the corner of his eye.

"You do know that even if you didn't end up getting together by yourselves that I would have to step in, right?" Martha continued.

"Mother!"

Martha swept past Castle and stood next to Beckett.

"Kate, darling, you have to look after him. I know he's a pain, but he really is quite lovely. Sometimes." With that, she disappeared upstairs, hauling her bags of shopping with her.

"So," Alexis said, turning to Castle, her eyes twinkling mischievously, "did I win the bet?"

"Don't you have something you have to be doing?" Castle said, walking over to the kitchen to get him and Beckett a drink. Alexis and Beckett followed him, standing at the counter expectantly.

"Nope, nothing at all," Alexis replied, smugness lacing her words. "So did I win it? Or do I owe Gram ten bucks?"

"No comment," Castle opened the fridge and got out two cans of Coke, setting them in front of his girls. As he pulled out a third can for himself, he shut the door to the icy chamber and turned around. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he noticed Beckett whispering in Alexis' ear. She pulled away sheepishly when she felt Castle's eyes on her. He simply rolled his eyes and shook his head as he leant on the counter to face Beckett.

"You are despicable." He made sure to enunciate every word.

"Yeah, but you have to put up with me or else there's no more Nikki Heat." Everything in her voice told Castle that she thought she'd won this round. He'd show her.

"Well, I could always follow another gorgeous cop around taking notes on her every move. Would that make you happy?" Castle hoped that Beckett could tell this was all in fun, that he didn't mean it. Beckett opened her mouth to deflect his previous statement, but when a voice spoke, it wasn't hers.

"You two really are cute."

Both Castle and Beckett turned to the younger redhead sitting beside them at the counter. Castle leaned back as he realized that, subconsciously, he'd been leaning closer to Beckett this whole time, and she to him. They were so close that an inch further would have their noses touching.

"Sorry, just saying. I'll leave you alone now," Alexis said, slipping off her chair and grabbing her Coke with a smirk.

"Alex-" he stammered.

"Dad," she cut him off with a grin, turning around halfway between the kitchen and the stairs, "bye!" She waved at him, practically skipping the rest of the way towards the staircase. She put one hand on the railing; the other still occupied with a can of Coke and leant her body back in the direction of the two adults, still sitting, dumbstruck, at the kitchen counter. "Oh, Dad, Beckett, don't worry. I never would have let Gram step in to get you two together."

"Uh, thanks?" Castle said, not really sure how to respond. He guessed he should be grateful. That mother of his could be kind of crazy when it came to getting something she wanted.

Alexis grinned brightly, and began to dance up the stairs, throwing over her shoulder, "I would have done it myself!"

* * *

**A/N: Hopefully you liked. All reviews are welcomed. Flames will be doused with optimism.**


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